By Sonja J. Keith
Senior members of the UCA football team are reaching out to a former teammate in a unique way that will help many others along the way.

For many years, Coach Clint Conque and his wife, Angele, have taken a personal interest in their players and have encouraged them to give back to the community. “We always try to do something with our group,” Angele said. “It’s like you have your own ministry.”

This year, Angele had an idea for a “senior flag,” a tradition that she hopes will become an annual event. The flag, which bears the numbers of all 12 “Dirty Dozen” seniors on the team, is flown with the university flag during tailgating at home games at the University of Central Arkansas.

At the end of the season, the seniors will sign the flag and it will be auctioned off.

After getting approval for the project from Athletic Director Brad Teague, Angele presented the idea to the seniors after practice one day and asked them to consider and decide what nonprofit organization would receive the proceeds. “I wanted to teach them that when you do something, they really need to feel something about it,” she said. “I wanted them to put some thought and energy into it.”

The players decided to honor Che Jones, a former wide receiver for the Bears who is in an ongoing battle with Crohn’s Disease. They elected to donate the money in his name to Arkansas Children’s Hospital, which has cared for the young man through much of his life.

The flag is expected to generate a lot of interest because the seniors represent bridging the gap from the 2005 Gulf South Conference champions – the last Division II team – to what is hopefully the 2008 Southland Conference championship team. In addition, several members may pursue professional football careers.

This year’s senior class includes Nathan Brown, Marquez Branson, Boomer Cunningham, Jeremy Ford, Brad Gordon, Tim Holloway, Dathan Johnson, Corey McMurrian, Mike Neal, Quad Sanders, Eric Ware and Marc Winston.

For more information on the senior flag and to register a bid, please go to www.ucasports.com and click on Senior Flag. The deadline to bid is 5 p.m. Friday, Dec. 19.